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CITY COUNCIL ELECTION

LABOUR'S CHOICE FOR SEATS

MR ARCHER TO CONTEST MAYORALTY

THREE FORMER COUNCILLORS TO STAND

Labour candidates for the Mayoralty and council seats at the forthcoming City Council by-election were selected at a meeting of the Labour, Eepresentation Committee last evening. They are as follows:

The Mayoralty Mr J. K. Archer. City Council Seats Mr R. M. Macfarlane. Mr G. Manning. Mr J. Mathison. Mr Archer is a member of the present council and his acceptance of the mayoral nomination meant his resignation, so that there will now be three seats to be contested on the council.

Five nominations for the Mayoralty were made by organisations affiliated to the Labour Representation Committee. They were:— Messrs J. K. Archer, E. J. Howard, M.P., Dr. F. Birkinshaw, and Messrs R. M. Macfarlane and J. S. 'Barnett, Of these, only Messrs Archer and Macfarlane accepted nomination and went to the ballot.

There was a very large attendance in the Social Hall at the Trades Hall, where the selection was held, and the chairman, Mr H. McCaw, stated after the meeting that more attended the selection meeting for this by-elec-tion than had attended the meeting to select candidates for the general election. After the ballot Mr Archer was confirmed as the official Labour candidate for the Mayoralty. Mr Archer was' called from his home to attend the meeting, after his selection and was given an enthusiastic reception. He delivered a short address.

Eight Nominations for Council Eight nominations were received for the vacancies on the City Council, which, after Mr Archer's choice for the Mayoralty, increased from two to three. They were Mr H. E. Denton, Mrs T. Green, Miss M. Howard, and Messrs R. M. Macfarlane, G. Manning, J. Mathison, G. T. Thurston, and G. Thurston. The three selected, Messrs Macfarlane Manning, and Mathison, all . obtained an absolute majority on the first count. Mr Macfarlane topped the poll, and Messrs Manning and Mathison tied in the number of votes received. The three are all former councillors. At the meeting a telegram was received from the present Mayor, the Hon. D. G. Sullivan, giving his best wishes for the coming byelection, and stating that he thought it important that in the selection of a Mayoral candidate one should be picked who would co-operate with the Labour Government.

The Candidates Following are biographical de-» tails of the careers of the selected candidates:— Mr J. K. Archer is a former Mayor of Christchurch and a member of the present council. He held a seat on the council from 1921 to 1925 and was .re-elected in 1931. He was Mayor from 1925 to 1931, when he retired to make way for Mr D. G. Sullivan. He has been chairman of the Christchurch Tramway Board since 1933 and is also a member of the North Canterbury Hospital Board. He unsuccessfully contested the Christchurch North'seat in the interests of Labour at the general election in 1922 and again in 1928. He was also the unsuccessful Labour candidate for Kaiapoi in 1931. Mr R. M. Macfarlane entered the Labour movement as a young man, and has taken a prominent part in its affairs in Christchurch ever since. He was elected to the City Council in 1929, and held a seat for! two years. In 1931 he was ap-i pointed secretary to the Labour Re-, presentation Committee, a position which he still holds, and he also acts as secretary to a number of trade unions. He unsuccessfully contested the Christchurch North seat at the last election. Prominent Labour Men Mr George Manning who, a few weeks ago, was appointed deputvchairman of the Christchurch Tramway Board,.in succession to Mr E J. Howard, M.P., has been prominent in Labour affairs since his arrival in New Zealand. He is also well known in the city as the secretary of the Workers' Educational Association. In 1917 he contested the City Council election for the first time, and 10 years later, in 1927 a iQ« e v te i a meml) er for a term', in 1933 he became a member of the Christchurch Tramway Board . Mr J. Mathison has been a promSSI • me^ub^ r .° l f the Labour move-ment-m Christchurch since he came here from Scotland in 1923. He wS elected to the City Council in 1933 and toward'the end of that vear" was elected a member of the TramSX *$"?• Before cominfi *° N?w Zealand he was an active member of the British Independent Labour party. He was president 'of the l r n a^Q?o Uni ?? <l n x Ch ™tchurch from 1929 until the time of the strike in 1932, and for a number of years has been a delegate to the Labour Representation Committee

Citizens' Association Candidates Some weeks ago the Citizens' Association announced that Mr J W Beanland would contest the Mayoralty in its interest and Sir Hugh Acland and Mr T. J. Maling were selected to contest the two vacancies which it was then known would occur on the * council., The resignation of Mr Archer from the council means another "vacancy, and it is probable that the announcement of a third candidate for this seat will

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